
Susan Stoderl
MUSIC AND WORDS FROM SONGS
Earth Walking, Soul Longing
Six songs for soprano and piano which focus on the connection between the soul and nature. Premiered at the Musikanten Festival in Helena, Montana (2010); Chamber 16, Works of Female Composers, St. Peters Church Series, March 2012; and WMP Concert Hall, New York, New York (2011).
1. The Call
The Earth Goddess boldly strides
rain spattered, pocked gray streets.
Her autumn tattered raiment
twirls, swirls ‘round her feet.
She bids me to follow.
I ignore her call and drift away.
2. Defiance
Leaves crimson and gold, mud-tattered yellow,
Defiantly cling to the known.
Entwining and embracing,
they hug the asphalt wetness,
avoiding Her wide-swathed broom.
Trudging through dampened streets,
weighted with belongings and cares,
my path is littered with disposable thoughts.
Brain mutterings muddle, puddle,
become mired in muck.
A precious few lift and float
bound toward star and moon.
"The Call" and "Defiance" from
Earth Walking, Soul Longing
Gretchen Mundinger, Soprano
Mary Bopp, Piano (February, 2011)
St. Peter's Church, Manhattan